Shaquille O’Neal – The man, the legend, the 4 time NBA Champion, the rapper, the entrepreneur, the face of so many brands, the actor, the king of twitter & the guy who gives you free tickets to his games if you can find him in real life.

6 months ago, we had the chance to sit down with the original Superman of the NBA. It wasn’t until now after his former team won the NBA Finals that we elected to let the world see Shaq for who he really is; a humble down to earth dude. We drilled Shaq on everything, and we mean everything! So enjoy.

Shaq, What’ve you been up to?

Just Chillin’. Playing for Phoenix. Other than that – just blessed. Been on twitter, having a great time on twitter. Just taking it easy – being myself.

You’ve been a part of American Pop Culture for the last 15 years – you’ve put out your own sneaker, been in movies, created rap music with the best (Common, Black Thought) and been at the center of many memes (Taco Neck Syndrome, Kobe Freestyle). Do you think you’re going to be in the limelight for the rest of your life?

Be in the limelight my whole life? No. Will I remain well recognized? Yes. It’s a great question – I don’t consider myself in the limelight now.

How do you feel about the “Kobe, tell me how my ass taste” clip?

It was all in good fun – the people had a good time at the club. I don’t allow or even want people to see me as being perfect – I’m a regular guy. (Kobe has since won the NBA Champion ship and Shaq has since issued a parody on his twitter page…)

Congratulations Kobe, you deserve it. You played great. Enjoy it my man, enjoy it. I know what you’re saying right now… “Shaq how my ass taste?” – The_real_shaq

Do you feel that will ever be another Michael Jordan?

No.

Really, MJ is the greatest that ever was, the greatest that ever will be?

Yes. He’s one of a kind – just really dominant on the court. Great guy. Great player.

How do you feel about trades?

It’s part of the business. You just have to have thick skin. I don’t ever take anything personal because it’s all business.

Who do you feel is the best player in the NBA right now?

(this interview was conducted in Jan. 09′) Probably the Kobester. Lebron James is close – but Kobe has the championships. Kobe is a 10, Lebron is about 9.6 or a 9.7.

You used to be part of the Miami Police Department – what is the reasoning behind that?

I was part of Miami Beach PD. Now I am part of Tempe PD. When I retire from basketball – I’d like to be Sheriff. In order to get the respect of other Police officers – I want to show them that I went through what they went through to get my credentials.

Of course Sheriff is an elected position and there is a chance I would win it just by being “Shaq” but I would never want to be given something like that just for being “Shaq”. I want everyone to know that I endured the hardships that every cadet has to in order to become a police officer and I have the same knowledge you have.

Do you have any idea of where you would want to be Sheriff? Would it be the last city you end playing for?

No. I’d like to be Sheriff of either Ft. Lauderdale or Orlando Florida. That’s where I’m going to be running. I bought my first house in Orlando when I played for the Magic.

How did you find out about twitter?

Someone came up to me and asked me if I said a certain thing on twitter. I was like “No…?” – so I investigated and there was a guy posing as me so I created @THE_REAL_SHAQ.

Have you thought about joining facebook or myspace?

Actually I went on facebook & myspace and there are impostors on both but I am not on either. The guy on myspace has like 10,000 friends. (Shaq now has a facebook account)

How many followers do you have on twitter?

(at the time of this interview) I have twenty thousand. I’m going to get to a million (he has reached 1.3 million followers as of the writing of this post).

What phone are you rolling with these days?

I’m rolling with a Nokia E61 – I don’t like the iPhone. I like the way the G1 from T-mobile looks but I’m with Verizon so if anything I’ll rock on the BlackBerry (which he now does).

How do you feel about Barack Obama’s time in office, did you support him in the general election?

I just want the President to get the country where it is supposed to be. I supported the winner in the general election.

What can we expect from Shaq in the coming years?

I just want to keep playing the game. I want to continue running profitable businesses. I’ve got a bunch of deals – Shaq sneakers, Icy Hot & Vitamin water. Eventually you will see me running for Sheriff in Orlando or Ft. Lauderdale, Fl.

Check out Shaq’s:
Twitter
12Seconds.tv
Facebook